A blank cheque (blank check, carte blanche), in the literal sense, is a cheque that has no numerical value written in, but is already signed. In the figurative or metaphoric sense, it is used (especially in politics) to describe a situation in which an agreement has been made that is open-ended or vague, and therefore subject to abuse, or in which a party is willing to consider any expense in the pursuance of their goals.
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Famous quotes containing the words blank and/or cheque:
“It is difficult to read. The page is dark.
Yet he knows what it is that he expects.
The page is blank or a frame without a glass
Or a glass that is empty when he looks.”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)
“Any general statement is like a cheque drawn on a bank. Its value depends on what is there to meet it.”
—Ezra Pound (1885–1972)